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4 keys to a child’s safe car ride

03/02/15 LICKING COUNTY, OHIO – It is the goal of the Licking County Health Department to ensure children in the county are safe while riding in a vehicle. To achieve this, the department holds regular child safety seat classes, provides free child safety seats to those who are income-eligible to receive them, and coordinates with community partners to hold child safety seat check-points throughout the year where our certified child passenger safety technicians will install residents’ child safety seats.
 
In Ohio, the law states children must be in a car seat until they are 4 years old and weigh 40 pounds. In April of 2010, the Ohio booster seat law went into effect. This law states all children, once out of a car seat, must go straight into a booster seat until they are 8 years old or 4 feet 9 inches tall. Although this is a new law, it has always been the Health Department’s recommendation to place your child in a booster seat once they have grown out of a car seat.
 
A seatbelt does not fit a small child the same way it fits a grown adult. The booster seat lifts a child up, allowing the lap portion of the seat belt to fit across the hips and thighs correctly, and the shoulder strap to fit over the shoulder properly, rather than on the neck.
 
A child restrained by an improperly placed seat belt, meaning without a booster seat, is actually at a greater risk for injury during a crash. The seatbelt can cause abdominal and spinal cord injuries if fitted over the stomach and neck.
 
In addition to the state laws, there are recommendations that help ensure the safety of a child during a crash.
  1. Choose a safety seat that is best for the child. Make sure the child is within the seat’s weight and height recommendations. Also follow the car seat manufacturer’s recommendations for rear facing and forward facing seats based on the child’s weight and height.
  2. Make sure the seat is installed properly into the vehicle. Nearly every Licking County car seat inspected by local child passenger safety technicians were installed incorrectly in 2014. Many had an error major enough to possibly jeopardize the child’s safety in a crash.
  3. Make sure the child is restrained properly in the car seat. The harness straps should be tight, sitting at the child’s shoulders with the retainer/chest clip in line with the armpits.
  4. Know the history of the car seat. Only use a car seat if you know that it has not been in a crash, or compromised in anyway. It is not recommended to purchase car seats at garage/yard sales or second hand stores.
Selecting the proper seat and having it properly installed into the vehicle are key aspects to the child’s safety during a crash. Certified technicians are available to inspect and install your car seat at the Licking County Health Department. If you are in need of a car seat, call the Health Department, as you may qualify to receive a new car seat or booster seat at no cost. This is made possible by grants from the Ohio Department of Health and The Energy Cooperative Round Up Foundation, Inc. Contact Ashley See, Health Educator, at (740) 349-6535 to schedule an appointment for an installation or to see if you qualify to receive a free car seat.
“The Licking County Health Department serves more than 160,000 citizens in the Licking County General Health District by preventing disease, protecting the environment and promoting healthy lifestyles with a vision of healthy people living in healthy communities.”
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Media Contact: Public Information Officer, thaynes@lickingcohealth.org, (740) 349-6488 

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